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Metal Detectors. No Banners, Flags Or Large Bags. Expect Heightened Security After University Protests
Madelyn Gamble’s journey to graduation from Indiana University has been marked by factors beyond her control. During the Covid-19 outbreak, Gamble enrolled in online university classes for his freshman year. She did not meet anyone from her graduation class until sophomore year. University protests over the Israel-Hamas war have disrupted her senior year.
The information systems major hasn’t been on campus since last week, when she claims the situation began “to get out of hand. We started college in a time of a lot of instability, where no one really knew what was going on,” said Gamble, a Washington native. “We started in instability and we’re ending in instability.
Traditional university graduation ceremonies, from New York to Los Angeles, will take place this weekend, following rising confrontations over the war in Gaza, with police infiltrating campuses to make huge arrests and pull apart encampments.
A time of sun-drenched pomp and grandeur, distinguished speakers, academic robes, and ornate mortarboards arrives with dread and irritation among graduates, teachers, and university authorities concerned about potential disruptions.
A key personal milestone for many young adults will be reached among police barricades, increased law enforcement presence, metal detectors, and other security precautions. Trained personnel will be on hand to handle disturbances.
Since the October attack on Israel that killed over 1,200 people and took hostages, US institutions have used law enforcement, academic suspensions, and expulsions to suppress student demonstrations. Israel’s brutal response in Gaza, which killed over 34,000 Palestinians, according to the health ministry, has fostered firmly held beliefs among students and staff on all sides.
Gamble and her family will not attend Friday’s commencement ceremony due to recent arrests of over 30 demonstrators on the Bloomington campus by Indiana University and State Police.
“They decided they didn’t want to go,” Gamble explained. “Just play it safe.”
Staffers ready to ‘respond to disruptions’
In a message to graduates and their families this week, Indiana University announced that new security measures have been established and that protest sites will be designated outside the ceremonies.
From Friday to next Thursday, the institution will award roughly 19,000 degrees during ceremonies.
Inside the venue staffers will respond to disruptions, beginning with warnings and requests to respect the importance of the celebrations for our graduates and their families, the school stated in a statement.
All guests will go through metal detectors. All luggage will be subject to scrutiny. Guests are permitted to bring clear bags that are approximately the size of a one-gallon freezer bag or small clutch approximately the size of a hand,” the school said in a statement. “Prohibited items include backpacks, banners, placards, flags, noise makers, weapons, packages and outside food and beverage. Capt. Ron Galaviz, an Indiana State Police spokesperson, stated that the agency is “in constant communication” with the university and its police department.
We continue to monitor the situation on campus and are ready to render assistance should IUPD request that of us, Galaviz said in a written statement. According to CNN, over 2,000 people have been arrested on college and university campuses since April 18. Protesters have been arrested at over 40 colleges across 25 states.
This weekend’s commencement festivities came after police in Los Angeles stormed into a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Thursday, knocking down tents and detaining over 130 demonstrators.Fire extinguishers and water bottles were thrown at cops, who, according to police, replied by firing flash bangs into the air to disperse the unruly masses.
UCLA’s commencement events are still scheduled for June 13 through June 16, according to the university’s website. Graduates from UCLA’s in-state competitor, the University of Southern California, will be unable to attend the school’s primary commencement event.USC canceled it last week due to “new safety measures in place.”
“We understand that this is disappointing,” the university stated on its website. The institution canceled the commencement address of its Muslim valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, due to security concerns. USC then canceled visits by high-profile speakers and honors at the May 10 graduation ceremony.
USC’s graduation ceremonies were set from May 8 to May 11. The main stage ceremony has typically brought all 65,000 students and their families together. Instead, the university plans to offer “new activities and celebrations” to make graduation events “meaningful, memorable, and uniquely USC.”
On Tuesday night, police forces cleared pro-Palestinian activists who had barricaded themselves in Hamilton Hall on Columbia University’s campus.More than 200 protesters were arrested.
Columbia stated the NYPD will remain on campus until at least May 17, after the university’s May 15 commencement event.
Columbia President Minouche Shafik stated earlier this week that the institution did not “want to deprive thousands of students and their families and friends of a graduation celebration.”
Please recall that many in this graduating class did not get a celebration when graduating from high school because of the pandemic, and many of them are the first in their families to earn a University degree,” Shafik said in a statement.
“We owe it to all of our graduates and their families to recognize their accomplishments. We want to reassure our community members who are making preparations that we will conduct a Commencement.
Spring graduation at the University of Michigan, where protesters have set up a pro-Palestinian encampment, is scheduled for Saturday at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor. The ceremony for individuals getting graduate degrees will take place Friday.
“Commencement ceremonies have been the site of free expression and peaceful protest for decades and will likely continue to be,” declared the University of Michigan.
Meera Herle, a senior at the University of Michigan who served as student body president this year, stated that she was “just looking for a positive moment” at the ceremonies this weekend. She recalled her pandemic-era high school graduation in Buffalo, New York, which was divided into small groups and held on a field. There were no hugs or handshakes.
According to Herle, the epidemic enabled her college peers to graduate in the middle of another unforeseen occurrence.
“Our class has sort of dealt with a lot of … unforeseen circumstances throughout our young adult lives,” she went on to say. “I think that this is also something that we are equipped to deal with.” Herle expressed excitement that her family will be attending her graduation and hopes that the experience will be positive.
“I’m going to have to sit down with my family before our big Michigan Stadium graduation and maybe have a quick conversation with them just to sort of prepare them, ‘Maybe this is something you’ll see,'” she went on to say. “Getting them into the mindset of, ‘It’s a college campus. This is what’s happening everywhere. Let things play out. “Everything will be fine.”
Focus on security, and the graduates
According to the University of Michigan’s website, there will be a designated area for protests outside ceremony venues. All commencement events will include security screenings, prohibit banners and flags, and be monitored by volunteers who will immediately “respond to disruptions, beginning with warnings.”
“Deans and directors will generally be patient with lawful disruptions,” claimed the institution. In March, police arrested 40 demonstrators for trespassing when they forced entry to a locked building. “If protests significantly impede the program, leadership will take steps to de-escalate and address the interruption.”
Colleen Mastony, the university’s assistant vice president for public affairs, added: “This could include asking someone to relocate a sign or to discontinue any other disruptive behavior. All of our events will be led by expert professionals, including representatives from our public safety and security division.”
The Michigan State Police will help the University of Michigan Police Department, according to State Police Lt. Rene Gonzalez. Melissa Overton, a deputy chief with the campus police, declined to comment.
“In an email to graduates and their families, University of Michigan Provost Laurie K. McCauley and Martino Harmon, Vice President for Student Life, stated that commencement ceremonies may witness various student expressions, including possible demonstrations.
Ohio State University will host its graduation at Ohio Stadium on Sunday, following the arrest of over 30 demonstrators the previous week.
Ohio State is not considering canceling commencement at this time, but will adjust staffing and public safety plans as needed,” said Benjamin Johnson, a university spokesperson. “The university does not share details of its safety and security plans, but standard plans have always included a disruption protocol.”
Everyone entering the stadium will be subjected to security screening and inspection. Metal detectors will be in place. Bags, flags, and signs will be prohibited.
Northeastern University will take similar safeguards when it holds its commencement ceremonies on Sunday at Fenway Park in Boston, which will be attended by around 50,000 people.
Last Saturday, officials dispersed “an unauthorized encampment” on the Boston campus, detaining approximately 100 people, according to a university spokesperson. The university has stated that oversized bags, as well as signs, banners, and flags, will be disallowed at graduation. Metal detectors will be installed at Fenway.
“The safety and security of our community is always our highest priority,” Northeastern’s vice president for communications, Renata Nyul, said in a statement.
“While we recognize that global challenges elicit strong reactions, the focus this weekend should be on our graduates and their extraordinary accomplishments. We look forward to celebrating our graduates with their families.”